Krokofant : 6 : Album Review

Krokofant : 6 : Album Review

Krokofant: 6
(Is It Jazz? Records, 2025)

The Norwegian jazz fusion scene is truly alive and well and it has been for over the last 20 years. Bands like Jaga Jazzist led the way with their mix jazz and electronica and through out the years bands like Hedvig Mollestad Trio, Elephant9 and Bushmans Revenge has created this scene for heavy jazz rock.

With one foot firmly in the 70’s but still sounding in the present. A prime example is Krokofant.

On paper the line-up of guitar,sax and drums sounds almost like some old school be-bop combo.
Don’t worry, this is heavy and intense music that blasts roaring through your speakers with full on energy and force.
Kongsberg, Bukserud, Norway in 2011 Their name is taken Their name is taken from a mythical creature out of a popular Norwegian children’s song, a cross between an elephant and a crocodile, “a lumbering trumpeting beast with a fearsome array of teeth in its snapping jaws…”, and they sound like it!

I’ve been following this instrumental trio since their self-titled debut in 2014.

The quality of the writing and playing has been very strong throughout. For a few years they expanded into a quintet with added bass and keyboards. That made their sound more organised perhaps and now wishing their music to be more “free”, they returned to the original trio format. With influences such as Soft Machine, early King Crimson and John Coltrane among others, their music is both structured and improvised.

The opening “Harry Davidson” comes right out of the gate with a riff that circles round a motive that reminds me of the middle section of Crimsons “Schitzoid Man” with the sax and guitar playing in unison to make this very thick sound with a playful rhythm underneath. This really makes me wanna dance around the room. Then there is a stabbing baseline that leads into solos. A highlight is Haslan guitar solo. Fluid, gripping with a nice warm tone that goes places before the band goes for homerun.
Since this is a trio it’s very tense. This is in your face music.

”Tripple Dad” is more expansive. Starts of with slow majestic notes that makes Mathisen multilayered sax the focus before the music flows into this playful shuffle with Mathisen at the helm channelling both Coltrane and Elton Dean. Then we move into to this slivery groove where the guitar takes on this joyous ride while Skalstads drumming really follows and creates this flowing backbone that is both tight but at the same time flexible. You can tell that this band knows each others playing really well and their having a great time exploring this music together.

On pieces like “Oh My Cod” (well they are Norwegian for sure )they start of with this written piece and then they go off on a tangent into this dark landscape with this menacing guitar/drums duet, only to come out of that into another more positive place.
Like going for a walk and passing through this ever changing landscape.
”Country Doom” on the other hand has this 70’s funk groove
to it. With some really thick doom chords for a change. And we get another great guitar solo that flows and grooves along.

”The Ballade” is a breather. Nice melody that reminds me off some ECM stuff and then it goes in to this weird white noise mayhem that really goes to show that this is not a comfy ballad after all, or perhaps it is. It too goes places.

The last track “Pretentious Woman” sums this album up with a flowing beat a dancing riff and a sax solo that is really expressive and intense and yet another guitar improv that really flows and ripples with that warm tone.

Man, I really love this. I know it is way to early to talk of best of lists but for me this is gonna be on mine. Because when these 45 minutes are other I wanna hear more. I want to collect their catalogue, I want to see this band live. Proudly wear a t-shirt, collect grey area tapes, the works.

This is fantastic. If you are a jazz fusion fan or a jamband fan, you have to give this a spin and please pick this up!

Highly recommended!

11/10

ORDER FROM THE BANDS BANDCAMP PAGE

Krokofant
Tom Haslan: guitars
Axel Skalstad: drums
Jørgen Mathisen: saxophone

Potus Norshammar | Now Spinning Magazine

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